Posts Tagged ‘Philippines’

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“Our shoes will march for us.” Symbolic & poignant Silent March by 20,000 pairs of shoes in Paris on Nov. 29, 2015. (credit: Nicole Ghio of the Sierra Club)

(Please click on red links & note magenta)

I’ve been away for quite a while. But this event definitely needs to be shared, despite how busy life may get. Even though the focus of Sun Is The Future is to promote, educate, and share information regarding solar energy, please do keep in mind that the transition into use of solar energy would help to reduce pollution, solve energy problem, slow down climate change, eliminate international conflicts, and generate local jobs and economy.

This may seem to be the worst of times, but it holds the promise of a future for the best of times….on this eve of the COP 21 climate talks (when leaders of nearly 200 countries will be joining for a global conference on climate change in Paris), climate activists and Parisians once again stepped up with creativity, in Place de Republique, to demonstrate not only to those in the City of the Light, but also to all of those around the world: placing about 20,000 pairs of shoes as a symbol of the poignant “silent march,” after being told by French authorities that they couldn’t march in Paris.“This is a way of symbolically and powerfully joining the climate march and each pair of shoes shows the determination of Parisians to have their voices heard on climate change,” said Iain Keith of Avaaz, which helped plan the action. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon dropped off a pair of his running shoes, saying, “As the world gathers in Paris to stand up for climate action, let us also stand in the shoes of all victims of terrorism, war and persecution and respond with compassion.” Pope Francis sent along a pair of shoes to be placed on his behalf.

Human Chain (nearly 10,000 people participated in the human chain, according to Agence France Presse) in Paris demanding the oil to be kept under the ground (credit: 350.org)

When the clock struck noon in Paris today (Nov. 29, 2015), thousands of Parisians and activists joined hands to form a human chain down Boulevard Voltaire, starting from Place de Republique, passing the Bataclan Theater (where most of the lives were taken during the tragic attacks of November 13th), and down to Place de la Nation. At the Bataclan, participants left a 100-meter gap for the memorials that line the sidewalks. Nearly 10,000 people participated in this human chain, according to Agence France Presse.

Human Chain in Paris, on November 29, 2015, from near Place de Republique to Place de la Nation (credit: Ben & Jerry’s)

“We joined hands today against climate change and violence,” said Hoda Baraka, Global Communications Manager for 350.org. “People here in Paris, and hundreds of thousands who are taking part in climate marches worldwide, have a clear message for world leaders: keep fossil fuels in the ground and finance a just transition to 100% renewable energy.” In London an estimated 50,000 showed up. In Belfast and Berlin and Barcelona, climate activists took to the streets. Here in the United States, climate marches are underway in New York and Nashville, in Louisville and (later today) in Los Angeles. In Bargny, Senegal, demonstrators flowed through the streets. Please allow me to share some of the images by 350.org of marches (Global Climate March) that broke out in Africa, Asia, Australia, Middle East, Europe, and North and South America.

It is time to let our Sun Shine In Throughout Our Planet Earth It Is Time To Let Our SunShine In for it is the Clean and Renewable Energy such as Solar and Wind Energy that will slow down the climate change, solve pollution and energy problem, reduce international conflicts, enable prosperity for clean energy industry by creating more local jobs. Leaders of the world, will you be riding on the top of the wave of Solar Tsunami or below it ?! The decision is yours!

News on Feed-in Tariffs

Governor John de Jongh, Jr. of the Virgin Islands signed a bill enacting feed-in tariffs in the US territory on May 16, 2004. Act 7586 is a greatly watered down version of the original proposal by Senator Craig W Barshinger. The act directs the territory’s utility to set the tariffs and otherwise administer the program. The tariffs must be approved by the Public Service Commission. Unlike many recent feed-in tariff proposals in North America, the Virgin Islands act includes other renewables an[more]

Facing pressure due in large part to a pipeline of proposed PV installations and increasing electricity demand, the Philippine Department of Energy (DOE) is organizing plans to raise its feed-in tariff (FiT) cap to 10 times more than the current rate.

REACH’s wrapup summary of renewable legislation that was considered by Hawaii’s state legislature during its 2014 session, including 100% RE, storage, grid modernization, net-metering, and various renewable energy tax credits.

News on Nuclear & Renewable Energy Policy

The Fukui District Court ruled Wednesday that it will not allow the restart of two reactors at Kansai Electric Power Co.’s Oi nuclear plant, now under safety examination by Japan’s top nuclear watchdog. . . It is the first time since the Fukushima nuclear crisis erupted in March 2011 that a Japanese court has ordered a power supplier not to bring a nuclear plant online.

The Danish Energy Agency has published an energy-scenario report and five sub-analyses on the energy system of the future and the challenges that need managing up to 2050 as fossil fuels are phased out and replaced with renewable energy.

News on Wind Energy

Windpower Ownership in Sweden: Business models and motives, the new book by Tore Wizelius helps English-speakers understand how Swedes have taken a sizable ownership of wind energy in spite of their government. In this, his book can serve as an inspiration to community wind advocates worldwide who face many of the same challenges faced in Sweden.[more]

News on Household-Size (Small) Wind Turbines

Evance have an innovative new windmill design 90% of the way through development and nearing the production stage, following the manufacture and supply of almost 2,000 of smaller windmills –between 10-20m tall – to Britain and locations across the globe from the USA and Madagascar over the past decade.

News on Geothermal Energy

However, developers say a lot of the uncertainty around geothermal in the U.S., and part of the reason it hasn’t grown much in recent years, is due to the unreliable nature of the Production Tax Credit (PTC) and Investment Tax Credit (ITC).

This feed-in tariff news update is made in cooperation with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance. The views expressed are those of Paul Gipe and are not necessarily those of ILSR.

Gathered and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker
Any of your questions/comments/suggestions will be welcomed at sunisthefuture@gmail.com
Please also get into the habit of checking at these sites below for more on solar energy topics:

As I turned on my computer in the morning, there are more reports of simmering conflict between China and Japan over the three islands in the East China Sea (from September 18, 2013, demonstration march outside the Japanese Embassy in Beijing, to Japan’s nationalist Prime Minister Shinzo Abe giving order in October, 2013, to shoot down any aircraft, including Chinese surveillance drones, flying over Japanese airspace, then spokesman for China’s Defense Ministry Geng Yansheng delivering the statement, “Chinese aircraft have never infringed on other countries’ airspace, and China never allows other countries’ aircraft to infringe on China’s airspace, adding that if Japan took such moves, it would be a severe provocation to China and “an act of war, and China will take resolute measures to strike back….” . Now in November, Russian bombers are sighted flying near Japanese air space, putting Japan’s Air Self Defense Force on alert. What a contrast from our coverage of World Solar Challenge 2013 that just took place in Australia last month, where teams from different countries (including China, Taiwan, and Japan) were all collaborating and full of hope and optimism for all of our future in solar energy. The more reports I’ve read on the China-Japan disputes, the image of “breaking of the glass” of Jewish wedding tradition flashes in my mind’s eye.

So, how does “breaking of the glass” fit in? This, to me, was such a bizarre tradition the first time I attended one of my Jewish friends’ wedding. But the older I get and more weddings I’ve attended, the more I have come to appreciate what it represents. It was explained to me as a symbol of:

breaking away from the past in order to start afresh toward the future

breaking down of barriers between people of different cultures and faiths

frailty of human relationships and love and reminding us to treat our relationship with special care

destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem

breaking the glass together-working through challenges together and celebrating successes of life is best done together

even in the happiest time, we must remember that there is still much suffering in the world

What does it have to do with China-Japan dispute, you might ask.

As I’ve previously posted in my January 4, 2013 post, the Diaoyu Islands (also known as Senkaku Islands among Japanese) are a group of uninhabited islands east of mainland China, northeast of Taiwan, west of Okinawa Island, and north of the southwestern end of the Ryukyu Islands. They are currently controlled by Japan and both China and Taiwan claim sovereignty over the islands. Some of you may wonder why is there such an escalating territorial row between Beijing and Tokyo over these bunch of rocks of uninhabited islands. Well, the value of Diaoyu islands (Chinese) or Senkaku islands (Japanese) dramatically shot up and became the center of attention after an obscure 1969 United Nations report suggesting the seabed in the area could contain an oil bonanza. Apparently this document produced from surveys conducted by an international team of experts (including scientists from China and Japan) never gave any estimate of the reserves. It seems, to me, that the mere suggestion of vast reserves that the continental shelf between Taiwan and Japan could hold a staggering 100 billion barrels of oil was enough to set off a territorial scramble.

Professor White, in the Sydney Morning Herald during early part of 2013, wrote that we are now witnessing the types of conditions that have historically led to war, despite the conflict being in no one’s interest. He further indicated that the war would not necessarily be contained or short. It does seem laughably unthinkable that the three richest countries of our planet (two of which are nuclear armed) would go to war over something so trivial. But history reminds us not to confuse what starts a war with what causes it. The escalation of tit-for-tat without a clear circuit-breaker may lead to some point when shots will be exchanged;once such spiraling to war begins, neither side will win and it would be devastating not just for China and Japan, but for rest of the planet earth.

Back in July of 2012, China was mulling over the possibility of raising its 2015 photovoltaic target to over 25 GW. With the concern over sovereignty issue (truthfully, it is an issue over oil reserves) involving Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, need of clean energy sources, and the need to make their economic growth less dependent on fossil fuel, in January of 2013, China is now aiming to add 10 GW (gigawatts) of installed solar power capacity and 18 GW of installed wind power capacity this year alone. For a table of China’s renewable energy targets for 2015 and 2020, please click on Reuters.

Truly, the real solution to China’s dispute with Japan does not lie in ownership of some rocks of uninhabited islands, but in alternative clean fuel sources such as solar and wind energy. As I’ve repeatedly written, solar energy is: cleaner, safer, healthier, more readily available, with great sense of timing, and requires fewer moving parts (in March 4, 2011 post) than fossil fuel or oil. If one factors into the cost of potential WWIII/nuclear war, it is no wonder the wise leaders in China would have great incentive to increase the rate of installations for solar PV and wind.

Since our initial discussion originated from the territorial row over Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, let’s take a closer look at the cause of the problem numerically. It is, in essence, a row over the promised potential of accessing 100 billion barrels of oil in that region. But the burning of fossil fuel/oil really would not help the already polluted air quality of either China or Japan. So, it is a matter of energy/fuel that they are fighting over. To have a more clear picture of the situation, please view the video clip of Michael Klare, Five Colleges professor of peace and world security studies, available at my January 10, 2013 post:

We are in a transitional period when wise, ethical, and skillful international diplomatic politicians are desperately needed who will not only be able to negotiate the last few barrels of oil (without triggering any war), but also be able to convince our government to shift one quarter of our military budget toward research and development in energy alternatives (as suggested by Michael Klare), and cooperate with China and Japan for research and development for renewable energy in the coming century. So we will be able to carry out the most moral and patriotic American path for our future generations. So U.S. , China, and Japan (users of more than half of earth’s energy and producers of half of the earth’s CO2 by 2030) will go down in history not as plunderers of the planet earth but rescuers of the planet earth who worked cooperatively in finding solutions to earth’s energy and pollution problems.

Our planet is suffering, be it in the form of China’s air pollution or Philippines’ typhoon. What Russians, Japanese, Filipinos, Chinese, and Americans…all Earthlings need to remind ourselves is that we are all so interconnected that suffering of one or one region will impact all of our planet Earth. We need to pool our source of time, energy, and natural resources in solving the problem of climate change-pollution-energy rather than wasting them over territorial disputes that may potentially lead us all to total destruction.

There is hope! We’ve seen the Chinese government versatile enough to “China does a ‘180’ on air pollution policy to combat its deadly smog” The Japan-China Economic Association will be sending around 180 leaders of major businesses in Japan over to China, in the hope of improving the strained ties between the two East Asian countries. One of the spokespersons for this largest business delegation to visit Beijing since 2011, Fujio Cho, chairman of Toyota Motor Corp, indicated that they filed a request to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang or Vice Premier Wang Yang. They hope to convince Chinese senior officials from both public and private sectors to start mending ties between the two Asian countries. They will also be showing support for Li’s structural reforms (which includes removing excess production facilities in the country) and government-affiliated firms.

At this hour, let’s hope that the leaders in China will receive the business delegation from The China-Japan Economic Association with care. Let’s also hope that the Chinese will offer greater assistance to help relieve the sufferings of Filipinos.

Perhaps all of those involved in disputes and negotiations mentioned above would deeply contemplate/visualize the “breaking of the glass” scenario, be free from the historical disputes of the past (be it from China-Japan or Japan-Russia conflicts and sentiment resulting from WWII), in order to break down barriers, protect the frail international relationships, come together to face the challenge of our earthly energy-pollution-climate change problems. Only then, will there be the good luck for us to step into a cleaner, healthier, and safer renewable/solar energy future. Only then, will we be able to call out “Mazel Tov.”

(Perhaps if all negotiating members will be breathing in 30-60 minutes of air from oxygen bar prior to all negotiating meetings would also help.)

~have a bright and sunny day~

gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker

Any of your comments will be welcomed below or via sunisthefuture@gmail.com (please note if you do not want your email to be shared)

STELLA of Solar Team Eindhoven of Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands) came in First for Cruiser Class of World Solar Challenge 2013 (credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

made it two from two winning the Cruiser Class category announced tonight at the Awards Ceremony in Adelaide. With a score of 97.5% to Eindhoven it was perhaps closer than the Dutch had predicted, with Germany’s Hochschule Bochum team

third place. The Cruiser class was judged on the key criteria of solar kilometres travelled; passenger kilometres; speed; energy efficiency; and a subjective element of design and practicality. Of the eight Cruisers built especially for the Australian event, four completed the 3020 kilometres on full solar power, the University of Minnesota from the USA

DAEDALUS of University of MN (USA) (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

joining the ranks with the Dutch, German and Australian teams, taking out fourth place with 79.2%. Each of the top teams had differing strategic approaches to the contest. Eindhoven being a four seater car easily accounted for the most passenger kilometres; Bochum were the most energy efficient, and UNSW Sunswift were the fastest to the finish line. Final judging occurred on Saturday afternoon with the expert panel assessing characteristics such as: ease of access; comfort; controls; features; style; ease of charging, overall desirability; road registration; parking and cargo space. Judges put the cars through their paces on the finish line. Teams were tested for their parking skills, their ability to load the trunk with numerous suitcases and the ultimate cargo test – could the Aussie esky also be stowed the right way up in the trunk? The judging panel spent hours deliberating final scores with the topl three cruisers all shining in their own right. Team Bochum’s Powercore Suncruiser scored high on accessibility and desirability and Sunswift’s ‘EVE’ was the most stylish. In the end it came down to just five points between the three top teams with the world’s first four seater solar family car , ‘STELLA’ taking the honours. The remaining four cruisers completed the Challenge with a combination of solar kilometres and trailer kilometres: Goko High School from Japan (2288 km);

KAITON II of GoKo High School (Japan) (Credit:sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

Event Director Chris Selwood said that after more than 3,000 kilometres it was perhaps fitting, in a category that was intended to bridge the gap between high-end technology and driving practicality, that the results would come down to practical design and the ability to appeal to every day drivers.

“I congratulate Team Eindhoven on their innovation, practical design, and foresight, to think outside the square and add the extra seats. ‘STELLA‘ is a wonderful solar car in a field of exceptional cars and teams. I look forward to 2015 and the prospect of more cruisers as we work toward the world’s most efficient electric car,” Chris said.

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Top 4 of each of the three classes, below:

Challenger Class

NUNA7 of Nuon Solar Team of Delft University of Technology (Netherlands), image above

NUNA 7 of Nuon Solar Team of Delft University of Technology(Netherlands), Leading By The End of First Day (Oct. 6, 2013) of the World Solar Challenge 2013 (solar car race) in Challenger Class (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

Below is the video of beginning of the World Solar Challenge 2013 (Oct. 6, 2013), in front of the Parliament House at Darwin, Australia.

ARROW1 of Team Arrow of Queensland University of Technology (Australia) seen on Oct. 5, 2013, after dynamic scrutineering process at Hidden Valley Motor Sports Complex at Darwin, Australia (Credit sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

ARROW1 of Team Arrow of Queensland University of Technology (Australia) at starting line on Oct. 6, 2013, in front of the Parliament House of Darwin, Australia, also in fifth place of the Challenger Class by the end of the First Day of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: World Solar Challenge 2013)

PROVISIONAL RESULTS DAY 1 of World Solar Challenge 2013

Team Nuon from the Netherlands, in their solar car Nuna 7, took an early lead in the Challenger Class of the 2013 Bridgestone World Solar Challenge and at the end of day one are approximately 633 kilometres south of Darwin. Just 32 kilometres behind at the Dunmarra Control Stop there is one minute separating second placed Team Twente in ‘Red Engine’ also from the Netherlands

THE RED ENGINE of University of Twente and Saxion, University of Applied Sciences-Solar Team Twente in Second Place by the End of The First Day, Oct. 6, 2013, during World Solar Challenge 2013, Challenger Class (Crdit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

and the 2011 Champion team Tokai from Japan, who as predicted, made up time early from 20th position on the starting grid.

TOKAI CHALLENGER of Tokai University (Japan)'s Tokai University Team in third place at the End of the First Day of World Solar Challenge 2013, Challenger Class (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

University of Michigan Solar Car Team’s-Generation, is in fourth place by the end of the first day.

GENERATION of University of Michigan Solar Car Team in Fourth of Challenger Class by the end of The First Day (Oct. 6, 2013) of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

approximately 10 kilometres out of Dunmarra with Australia’s Team Arrow showing they can mix it with the elite international field just behind in fifth place. In the Cruiser Class team Bochum from Germany

POWERCORE SUNCRUISER of Germany's University of Applied Sciences Bochum's Hochschule Bochum SolarCar Team in the first place of the Cruiser Class at World Solar Challenge 2013 by the end of the first day (Oct. 6, 2013) (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

is in first place approximately sixty kilometres north of Dunmarra, with team Eindhoven from the Netherlands

STELLA of Eindhoven University of Technology (Netherlands)'s Solar Team Eindhoven in second place for Cruiser Class by the end of the first day (Oct. 6, 2013) of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

just five kilometres behind in second place, the DAEDALUS of Minnesota Solar team from the University of Minnesota (USA) in third

DAEDALUS of University of Minnesota (USA) in third place of Cruiser Class by the end of the first day of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: World Solar Challenge 2013).

place and University of NSW Sunswift team in fourth place

SUNSWIFT of University NSW (Australia) in Fourth of Cruiser Class by the end of the first day of World Solar Challenge 2013 (Credit: sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker)

approximately 100 kilometres north of Dunmarra. Leading the Adventure Class was Australia’s team Aurora who have never missed a solar challenge; followed by IVE from Hong Kong and Antakari from Chile.

For more photos and videos of World Solar Challenge 2013, please refer to links below:

Sunisthefuture Online Store at Zazzle
Keep in mind that the goal here at Sun Is The Future is to speed up the transition toward renewable/solar energy, for a cleaner, healthier, economically more prosperous, and safer planet earth.

~have a bright and sunny day~

gathered, written, and posted by sunisthefuture-Susan Sun Nunamaker

Any of your comments will be welcomed below or via sunisthefuture@gmail.com (please note if you do not want your email to be shared)

This post may had been prepared/written earlier than the day it appears, but right after the finish of the Veolia World Solar Challenge (world solar car race of twenty countries, 3021 km (1877 mi) between Darwin, Australia, to Angle Vale (official finish line) and Adelaide (ceremonial finish line), Australia, and thirty-seven solar cars) I had to fly to a location/ country where my internet access was not very convenient (it kept on being disconnected whenever I tried to write). However, I was able to load up various video clips onto youtube and I hope many of you have been enjoying these videos about the Veolia World Solar Challenge of 2011. I understand one of you from Netherland is trying to gather as much information about the race as possible. Since this is my first time covering Veolia World Solar Challenge, or WSC (and only had time and budget for the start and end of the race), I hope these photos I took and video clips I uploaded (and filmed by Mike) to youtube will help to meet part of your need. I promise you in two years (next Veolia World Solar Challenge) more detailed coverage about the scrutineering process (before the race) and events along the race will be included. Please keep in mind that the goal and focus of this World Solar Challenge is to increase greater awareness and education for our future generations in application of solar energy in cars and to stimulate greater interest in math, science, and engineering. The emphasis is both in how far and how fast (rather than just how fast) these solar cars can go using energy from the sun. As a matter of fact, part of the rule this year had actually restricted total surface area of the solar cells to 6 sq m and of which only 3 sq m can be of GaAs (gallium arsenide) so to even the playing field. Facility is available if a solar car needs to be “trailered” when insufficient sunshine is available for the duration of the race. This year, due to the extra challenges of cloudiness, rain, and bush fire, only about 7 out of 37 solar cars were able to finish the course completely using solar energy. The atmosphere at WSC is friendly and encouraging rather than fiercely competitive. One finds this to be true either in the scrutineering process (insuring safety of drivers/pilots and those around), tracking of the timing (please refer to: http://www.worldsolarchallenge.org/files/318_2011_veolia_world_solar_challenge_provisional_results_pending_protests.pdf), or in the finish presentation (ritual dip in the Victoria Fountain by all teams (those that were not too shy or too cold) at the end of the race or not so ritual “burning rubber” of the German team). Finally, I’d like to take my hat off to Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 team for being able to pull off a race of this magnitude (involving solar cars from twenty countries) with mostly volunteers working together to make this race work. Running an organization composed of mostly volunteers is not the same as running a normal company (I’ve had experience in both and believe me, running an organization composed mostly of volunteers is not easy!). So, if any of you out there with good ideas (to help improve the solar car race), funding, or time to volunteer, perhaps you’d like to contact Mr. Chris Selwood (leader and rightful owner of Veolia World Solar Challenge) and/or the organization at http://www.worldsolarchallenge.org/contact_us For the ease and convenience of our readers’ pleasures, there are written descriptions for these solar cars with each of the youtube video clip of the interviews for its team members. So please be sure to read (click on “Show more” at each youtube clip) about the descriptions for these solar cars. I tried to take photograph and to interview as many of the participating solar cars of Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 as possible, but due to time constraint, please forgive me if I missed any one. With regard to all the video interviews at youtube, if any of the interviewees’ names is either misspelled or not mentioned, please feel free to contact me at sunisthefuture@gmail.com so I can make the necessary modification. Below, you will find links to our youtube clips/interviews with various teams and photographs of these solar cars. Keep in mind that these videos and photos pertaining to Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 are under Creative Commons as long as you would attribute it/them to Sun Is The Future at http://sunisthefuture.net There will be more posts on human interest stories and lessons learned regarding Veolia World Solar Challenge 2011 later.